The Packers have signed Pro Bowl TE Jonnu Smith to a 1 year deal.
The signing comes as Training Camp comes to a close, giving a pretty clear indication of what the Packers thoughts were on their tight end room heading into the regular season. I love this move. Adding a veteran player at his level will only help strengthen the team as a whole.
Here’s a look at Jonnu Smith, and how he can make an immediate impact for the green and gold.
A Veteran With A Resume The Packers Needed
Jonnu Smith has a resume that speaks for itself. Over the last 9 years this journeyman has seen playing time with the Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Here’s his career by the numbers to date through 141 games:
Yearly Receiving & Rushing Breakdown
| Season | Team | Games | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD | Carries | Rush Yds | Rush TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | PIT | 17 | 38 | 222 | 5.8 | 2 | 9 | 70 | 1 |
| 2024 | MIA | 17 | 88 | 884 | 10.0 | 8 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
| 2023 | ATL | 17 | 50 | 582 | 11.6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | NE | 14 | 27 | 245 | 9.1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| 2021 | NE | 16 | 28 | 294 | 10.5 | 1 | 9 | 40 | 0 |
| 2020 | TEN | 15 | 41 | 448 | 10.9 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 2019 | TEN | 16 | 35 | 439 | 12.5 | 3 | 4 | 78 | 0 |
| 2018 | TEN | 13 | 20 | 258 | 12.9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | TEN | 16 | 18 | 157 | 8.7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | — | 141 | 345 | 3,529 | 10.2 | 30 | 28 | 196 | 2 |
Jonnu has been a consistent threat regardless of the roster he’s been on. In fact it was just 2 years ago that he had a breakout season with Miami, setting the single-season franchise records for a tight end with the Dolphins with 88 receptions, 884 receiving yards, and 8 touchdowns.
Here’s the highlights of that franchise record setting season.
Jonnu Smith’s Top Plays of the 2024 Season | Miami Dolphins
Jonnu Smith Immediate Impact For The Packers
I fully believe that Jonnu Smith will fit seamlessly into Matt LaFleurs offense. While there is sure to be a little bit of a ramp up as he learns the playbook, I can’t understate the excitement of seeing him lined up opposte Tucker Kraft.
I can nearly gauarantee that Smith and Kraft will be a YAC (yards after catch) factory for the Packers in 2026. Smith has totaled 2,263 career yards after the catch in his career. That translates to 64% of his total career receiving yards coming after the catch!
Smith plays with a smash mouth style, and If you watched that highlight reel above, you know just how physical this guy gets.
He’s also an extremely versatile athlete. Throughout his career Smith has taken snaps in-line, as well as wide receiver, fullback, and has even taken handoffs directly out of the backfield.
It should be interesting to see how LaFleur schemes up plays for Smith while also feeding the other elite talent along the line. This receiving arsenal Jordan is coming to town with in 2026 looks to be lights out and explosive.
Packers Roster Implications
While signing Smith is essentially just a 1 year prove it deal, it speaks volumes to where Gutey and company see the future of the Packers tight end room headed. Unfortunately, I would assume this is likely the canary in the coal mine for TE Luke Musgrave. While he had a promising start with the team, he has been plagued by injury, most recently hurting his neck during mandatory minicamp in June.
Behind Musgrave there’s Josh Whyle, whom I still believe has a very high upside, however, his is a question of availability as well.
The best ability is always availability. Signing a Pro Bowl elite caliber tight end like Jonnu Smith to an incentive based deal to bolster the room is a brilliant move. At the end of the day, the Packers needed someone they can rely on. God forbid, if Kraft goes down again, or even just needs to share the workload, they now have a proven veteran. Smith has been extremely reliable, appearing in all 17 games over the last 3 seasons.
The last part of the puzzle is how the Packers will handle splitting the snaps between Smith and Kraft. Tucker is still far and away TE1 for the squad, but I expect to see Jonnu out in the mix making a name for himself over the middle of the field and in the red zone.
I would of course also expect to see the Packers run the 12 personnel look with them lined up in tandem. This should also help establish the run with a beefed up offensive line.
Packers Looking To Week 1
The Packers had their joint practice with the Cardinals this week, and will face off against them tonight in their final preseason game. That being said, tonight is more about the final fight for a spot on the final 53 ahead of cut day this weekend. I doubt there will be any starters playing meaningful snaps, and it’s safe to say all eyes are now focused on Week 1 against Minnesota.
With the recent developments concerning Josh Jacobs, the timing couldn’t be better to give Jordan Love another weapon. One can only hope Jonnu Smith hits the ground running and brings another threat for opposing defenses to account for.
Here’s a great highlight reel of Smith’s season with the Steelers last year courtesy of The Highlight Zone.
Welcome to the Packers indeed, Jonnu Smith.
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